Redemption
by Muffinzelda
Summary: An indecent offer accepted, a young soldier's life avenged, a family moves on. The Dorr family saga, long hidden, unfolds when a certain Baron makes contact with Felicity and James's youngest child. It's 1960, and 18 year old Eugénie Dorr is about to learn that nothing in her life is as she thought.
1. Author Note and Prologue

Disclaimer- This story is for fan purposes only. The characters and original story are property of their respective owners (not me!) and are used here without permission. Enjoy!

* * *

Author note: Island at War! I came to the party about ten years too late on this one, but the Lewis fandom lured me in: where else can you see Ally MacLennan accuse Dr Hobson of an affair with her husband, Tom Rattenbury? Hobson herself is married to Hugh Mallory, and Nicky Turnbull helps their son, the hottie from Outlander. Not to mention baby Nazi flyboy Hathaway falling in love with Downton's Anna! (It's on Netflix! Go watch!)

I was completely hooked by Clare Holman and Philip Glenister's chemistry so it was sad to learn there was only one series of Island at War. A head cannon began to develop in my mind so strongly that I broke my personal rules for fanfic. First of all, I don't do head cannon; my favorite part of fanfic is the wealth of possible scenarios. Indeed, the existing fanfic for Island at War is amazing. This is but one interpretation. Second, I don't create OCs as major characters. Oops! Enter Eugénie Dorr, whose name will be explained in the story- but her name is also an homage to Philip Glenister's non-Baron character DI Gene Hunt. My third personal rule for fanfic is that I don't kill off characters that don't belong to me; you'll have to keep reading to find out if I broke that rule or not! Another sin: I am embarrassed to admit how many times I consulted the Wikipedia page on the German Occupation of the Channel Islands for the historical content of this piece. I know, I know, bad Muffin.

Set in 1960 with many flashbacks to the 1940's, this is not a linear story. It's a bit like peeling back the layers of an onion; we return to the same events from different perspectives. There are five main sections, each with a central character (though not necessarily that character's POV): Eugénie, Philip, James, Felicity, and finally Heinrich. There will be daily updates, so stay tuned!

Lastly, I am grateful to Hobsonfan who helped me to navigate the fine line between Laura Hobson's sass and Felicity Dorr's righteous indignation. This story is a tangle of timelines and her careful beta read allowed me to clarify it for others to enjoy. Thank you, Hobsonfan!

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Prologue:

"It's half ten and I really have to go!" Eugénie Dorr brushed her long blonde curls out of her face after she broke away from her boyfriend. "I have a curfew and my parents—"

"—are controlling you, Genie" finished young Trevor.

"Not exactly," Eugénie demurred.

"Just strict, then?"

"No… I'd say they're more paranoid than anything else. Look, Trev, my family suffered a lot during the war. They just need to know where I am."

"It's 1960. Maybe you should tell them that the war ended fifteen years ago."

"Maybe so, but there are things that will always haunt them. Things that they can't talk about. I have to go."

Leaving Trevor with one last kiss, Eugénie Dorr scurried off into the night.


	2. Eugénie, part 1

Dorr's Florist was a modest boutique in the heart of London. There had been some lean years, but now business was bustling. Eugénie's brother Philip- nearly twenty years her senior- ran the business, but she worked the counter when she wasn't at school. Her parents, mum especially, wanted her to pursue studies in horticulture, but she was more attracted to accounting. So Philip was teaching her bookkeeping on the side and was always impressed by her calculating mind.

The bell attached to the door jingled as a man walked into the shop. Eugénie looked up from behind the counter. He took off his hat and nodded his head at her in greeting before he pretended to browse the selection of plants.

"Can I help you find something?" Eugénie asked.

"I was passing by and noticed your display. I was attracted to the admirable quality of your plants." His English was heavily accented by way of Germany.

Eugénie paused and regarded the man. He hadn't really answered her question, and she suspected there was much more to it than that. "My parents grow all our plants on the estate at our country home," she offered.

"Ah yes, I believe that I knew your parents many years ago." The man approached the counter and pulled a black and white photograph from his pocket. He showed it to Eugénie then scanned her eyes for recognition. It was a portrait of Felicity Dorr with her daughter on her knee.

"That is my mother, and me. Wherever did you get it from?"

"Mrs. Dorr sent it to me many years ago. Forgive me for being so forward, but I wish to pay you a compliment. You have become a beautiful young lady." It was true; Eugénie was taller than her mother, and stockier than any of the wiry Dorrs. Her parents seemed so thin they would blow away in the wind, but Eugénie had the healthy build of a rubenesque cherub. The German man smiled kindly.

"Thank you, sir."

"Tell me, is your mother well?"

At that moment, Philip Dorr came out front from the back room. He recognized the German man at once, though his hair was white and he wore a suit and tie instead of his Nazi regalia.

"Baron von Rheingarten. What are you doing here?"

"Mr. Brotherson!" The Baron looked genuinely pleased. "I am glad to see you, alive and well."

Philip turned to his sister. "Genie, go help in the back."

Eugénie refused to budge. She was intrigued by the German man who knew of her brother's alias during the war.

"Genie, I said go!" Philip insisted.

But Eugénie Dorr had a stubborn streak. "You can't boss me around like that." Turning to the Baron, she continued, "many people assume that he's my father, but he's really my older brother."

Baron von Rheingarten answered her somewhat ominously, "No, I would never make that mistake. I know who your father is."

Philip turned red. "Baron, I must ask you to leave."

The Baron put up his hands. "I was referring to Senator Dorr, of course."

"My father is a simple gardener now."

"I cannot imagine the Senator digging around in the dirt."

"He learned to work with his hands in a Nazi labour camp. And my mother has shared with him her love of gardening. They have rebuilt their life after the war. Please leave them to it."

"Let me put your mind at ease; I am not here to cause any difficulties. I am in London for a viticulture trade show. I hope to increase the business scope of my vineyard. My wife is traveling with me, and she does not know… of my time at Sous les Chênes."

"What brings you here, then, to our shop?" Philip asked.

The Baron said nothing for a moment, but gave Philip a knowing smile. "I will return at 2PM tomorrow. I trust you will convey to Mrs. Dorr- and to your father, of course- my distinguished salutations." The Baron put his hat back on, but before he left, he turned to Eugénie.

"I would like very much to see you again, Eugénie, though I fear that may not come to pass. If you are ever in Germany, I do hope you would call on me." He pressed a small card into her hands.

"Thank you." She murmured, unsure of what else to say or what to think of this old man who knew Philip and her parents, but seemed intent on focusing his attention on _her_.

The Baron left the shop.

"That was strange; who was he, Phil?"

"That is the man who had your namesake killed. He is a horrible man, Genie."

"What, he killed Eugène, the boy you were caught spying with? Then what in the world does he want with me?" Eugénie asked Philip, who stood silent. She never knew her brother to look so haunted. "Phil, what the hell is going on?"


	3. Philip, part 1

1960

"Darling? I need you at the counter," Philip Dorr called to his wife. "Could you manage the till for a while? Genie and I need to talk." Philip and Eugénie settled in the flat above the shop where Phil and his wife lived with their two children. Philip made tea.

"Before the war, I wasn't around very much- just home on my holidays, really- but I knew that mum and dad didn't really get on. After the war, everything was different. I came home from the POW camp in France, and suddenly there you were. We became a very close family. Secrets will do that, though, bind people together."

"What secrets, Phil?"

* * *

Flashback to St. Gregory in May 1945, shortly after the liberation.

Senator Dorr had just returned to the Senate after a long hiatus; as condition of his release from prison, he had had to give up his job. Angélique Mahy had always managed to keep him informed though, and he was able to serve as an advisor to the incompetent Bailiff LaPalotte in the shadows. His role in island affairs no longer verboten, Senator Dorr was reacquainting himself with what was left of his file cabinets when Angélique burst into his office. "Sir, I have the passenger manifest for the ship that is due this afternoon."

"Is my wife on it?" Felicity Dorr and the other English-born denizens of St. Gregory had been deported to a POW camp in Germany in 1942. In the early days following the liberation, the islanders waited anxiously for news of deported loved ones.

"No, but there's a Brotherson. No first name."

James Dorr rushed down to the port as fast as his bicycle would allow. He paced nervously as the latest boat approached from France.

"Phil!" The senator shouted from the pier as soon as he saw the familiar blonde head emerge from the masses. The two men embraced. Felicity had once criticized James for not showing Philip enough affection, but he more than made up for a life-time of stiff upper lips in that moment.

"How is mum?" Philip asked. James swallowed and explained her deportation.

"I was hoping that you might have news of her." James said.

"Sadly, prisoners aren't the best informed."

"We'll continue to pray for her safe return." James said.

"You came through the labour camp all right, dad? And Constable Jonas?"

"Yes, a little worse for the wear, but after 9 months I was released along with Constable Jonas."

"So the Baron was true to his word." Philip seemed relieved by that news, but his father suddenly had an icy stare.

"Yes. Baron von Rheingarten." James took a moment to compose himself. "Phil, there's something else you should know. I came back from the labour camp, your mother and I were reunited for a time, and…" the Senator couldn't hide a tiny bashful smile… "you have a sister now. Eugénie. Named for Eugène Lasalle."

"Dad, I think that's beautiful."

"She is, just like your mother. Now Phil, you might hear rumours in St. Gregory."

"What kind of rumours?"

"It doesn't matter. Just dismiss anything that you hear that is untoward. And no matter what you hear, always remember that Eugénie is your sister. You'll have to defend her as only a brother can. It broke your poor mother's heart to leave her here, but she wouldn't risk taking a baby to a German prison. Eugénie will need you more than ever if God forbid mummy doesn't come back."

Philip found that whole exchange odd, but didn't ask any more questions as his father was clearly upset. The toddler he met that afternoon didn't look much like him or his father, so he suspected for a time that his family was harbouring a refugee baby. Perhaps her family was Jewish? He thought of the young Jewish woman with whom he had attempted to sail for England. She had dived into the icy water after their boat was sighted by the Nazis. He wished he knew what had happened to her.

* * *

Island life resumed some semblance of normalcy on St. Gregory, even if much of it was for show. In June 1945, a royal visit was planned to heal the rift that opened when England left the Channel Islands vulnerable to German attack. Senator Dorr stood near the front of the gathered crowd with his family. By this time, Felicity had returned to them looking more like a skeleton than a woman, but the Dorrs rejoiced at being a family again.

Felicity held on to the pram in front of her as much for her own support as to transport young Eugénie. A passer-by spit in Eugénie's buggy. "Oi!" Philip started to shout at the man to make him apologise to his sister.

Felicity seized Philip's arm and hissed, "don't make a scene, Phil." Philip noticed that his mother was blinking back tears while his father stared straight ahead blindly. It wasn't the first time that Philip had questioned his father's stoicism. Philip knew from his mother's face that there was much more to the situation than not wanting to make a scene in front of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.

* * *

The mystery of baby Dorr followed Philip as he began working in his father's office at the senate. In one particular instance, he and Angélique Mahy had been going over a trade dossier with an increasingly senile Bailiff LaPalotte.

Though Angélique was doing all the work, the Bailiff seemed to dote on Phil. "I hope that you're paying attention, young Dorr, because you could be Bailiff yourself one day, just like your grandfather. Pity that the honour will pass your father by."

"But my father would make a fine bailiff."

"Of course he would; your father works like a dog because he loves St. Gregory. But he has lost the public favour, all because of the changeling, really. Noble man, he is, Senator Dorr."

Once Philip was alone with Angélique, he couldn't help but return to the bailiff's cryptic remarks.

"What do you think that the bailiff might have meant by 'changeling?' Was Eugénie switched at birth? Whose baby is she?"

"Ignore him, Phil, these are the ramblings of a senile old man. He doesn't know what he's saying."

"Maybe so, Angelique, but if there is some reason- true or not- that St. Gregory has turned its back on my father, I deserve to know."

"Phil, I don't like to repeat rumours."

"Please, Angélique. Just tell me." He grabbed her arm.

She lowered her head, ashamed to divulge the secret. "I believe that your mum and Baron von Rheingarten had an arrangement."

"Arrangement?" Philip sputtered, appalled. "Do you mean…?"

"By all rights, the Baron should have had you executed for spying. And your father for trying to help. I believe that your mother saved you both."

"No. You must be mistaken. This is wrong." was all Philip Dorr could muster.

"Phil, your mum was already visibly pregnant when your father returned from the prison camp."

"My mother is not a whore!" Philip stormed at Angélique. He would rather have died than have his mother sacrifice herself for him.

"God, Phil, no. Don't even think about your mother that way! And you can't let on that you know. It would kill her. I hate betraying your mum's secret, Phil. She was kind enough to keep mine."

"Yours?"

Angélique Mahy's voice began to tremble. "You'll probably think me a whore too then, but I fell in love with a German airman. Your mum was the only one who knew. June knows now, but my mum doesn't. Please don't say anything."

"Oh." He paused. "I'm sorry, Angélique."

"No, Phil. Don't be sorry; it's wonderful, just difficult. Bernhardt came through the war. Don't tell anyone- but I'm leaving St. Gregory. Bernhardt and I are going to make our life together in Argentina. He's going there first, to prepare our home. I don't know when I am leaving, but I pray that he sends for me soon."

Philip was stunned; he didn't go home that night. He needed to process all that Angélique had told him. He knew that he should have been executed just like his partner Eugène Lasalle. He thought that the Baron had spared him because they built a wall together, because the Baron had said that Philip reminded him of his own son. But now Philip knew that it was really for the love of his mother that the Baron betrayed his duty.

* * *

1960

Eugénie Dorr looked at the card in her hand. "Who exactly is the Oberst Baron Heinrich von Rheingarten, Phil?"

Philip shook his head and sighed. Discovering her origin would be traumatic enough for Eugénie without him spewing hatred for the man who had sired her. Philip checked his rage for Eugénie's sake. "He was the Nazi commandant at St. Gregory. He and several of his men took up residence at Sous les Chênes. He had your namesake, Eugène Lasalle, killed. I should have been killed with him. But… the Baron was kind to Mr. Brotherson. We'd repaired a wall together back at Sous les Chênes. The Baron didn't know that Mr. Brotherson was really Philip Dorr. And I didn't know how much the Baron cared for mum. She intervened when I was caught as a spy; the Baron could have had both me and dad killed. But he spared our lives."

"How do you mean, mum intervened?"

"Mum and the Baron… I believe they were close, especially after Dad and I had gone to prison. It's still hard for me to think about. Best not to imagine mum all alone in a house full of Nazis, right?"

"Oh God, Phil, what are you saying?"

"I don't know, Genie. Mum and dad never talked about it. We should go see them together, in the morning. Stay here tonight."

"No, I am going home!" Eugénie dramatically stuffed a few things into her rucksack and stomped off, slamming the door behind her. He could hear her thundering down the stairs. _That girl has an overdeveloped sense for the theatrical,_ thought Philip.


	4. Philip, part 2

1960

Philip Dorr came downstairs to the front of the shop and looked at his lovely wife. "What's wrong with Genie?" she asked.

"She knows." Phil whispered to her as he took her into an embrace. He mentally prepared himself for how to tell Hannah that a Nazi from their past had been in the shop that day. She wouldn't take it well.

* * *

flashback to St. Gregory, 1946

Angélique Mahy was secretly saying her final goodbyes to her friends before she left for South America. She'd written a letter explaining to June that she would soon place on the counter of the photo shop, but she couldn't bring herself to tell her Jewish friend Zelda Kay that she was leaving to marry a former Nazi airman. To see her friend one last time, Angélique had invited Zelda to lunch at a tea shop in town. Angélique was working alongside Philip Dorr when Zelda arrived at the office to meet her. "Philip Dorr, I'd like you to meet Zelda Kay."

"Hannah." Philip whispered. Philip and Hannah Kozminsky stared at one another, each hardly believing that the other had survived their failed attempt to escape St. Gregory. He'd been captured by Nazis and she'd disappeared into the English Channel.

"My name is Zelda." She corrected him timidly, and he nodded in compliance.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Zelda." Philip was thunderstruck.

"Phil, why don't you join us for lunch?" asked Angélique suggestively. She had wanted to reunite two people who had survived an ordeal together, but it seemed that she had made a match in the process. It was a fitting parting gift.

* * *

St. Gregory, 1948

Zelda and Philip grew closer as the months went by and turned into years. She had a very guarded nature, but Philip was persistent when it came to courting her. They were walking along the beach at la Roche Noire one day when he finally asked her. "Will you ever let me in, beyond that wall of yours? I care for you very much, and I swear I would never do anything to hurt you."

"Oh, Phil. I know." She put her hands on his chest. "I feel safe with you, safer than I have ever felt." He tried to kiss her, but she pulled back.

"What is it, then?"

"We can't- I'm not-" she struggled to articulate what she meant and felt the tears welling up. Screwing up her courage, she declared, "you mustn't fall in love with me. You'll be a senator someday, maybe even bailiff, and you need a reputable wife."

"What? Is this about religion? Because I don't care. If one of us still believes in God, that's a comfort to me. I can't. I've seen too much suffering. But if we have children, you can raise them Jewish if that is what you want."

She looked up at him with saucer eyes and realized that it was too late. He loved her, and she loved him. This time she let him kiss her- tenderly at first, then more deeply. When they broke apart, she began to sob.

"Zelda, what's wrong? I thought that was what you wanted."

"Yes, Phil. But… it's not about religion. I'm not… pure- a virgin I mean."

Philip felt himself go rigid as Zelda continued. "You know that I was hiding in the Mahy's attic during the war. I was hiding- not just from the Nazis, but from one in particular- Lieutenant Walker. They were rounding up the Jews of St. Gregory, and Walker had figured me out. He knew that Zelda Kay had no papers, and he traced my mail to learn that I am really Hannah Kozminsky. He said he would protect my identity if I went to bed with him. I didn't have a choice, Phil."

Philip could feel the blood hardening in his veins and his heart turning to stone. First his mother, then the woman he loved? He might have to feign ignorance for his mother, but he wanted to know exactly what happened to Zelda. "He forced you to have sex with him?"

Zelda nodded. "I was so scared that he would come back that I went into hiding the very next day."

"I remember Lieutenant Walker. A right bastard." Philip thought back to a night in the greenhouse at Sous les Chênes, hiding with his mother. Walker had entered the greenhouse looking for a place to fornicate with his jerrybag of the night. Felicity Dorr made her presence known, and Walker threatened her for breaking curfew. Philip's mother then haughtily informed Lieutenant Walker that the last time she'd been out after curfew was with the Baron. _My God, why didn't I question that at the time?_ Did Walker treat Zelda the way he'd treated that woman in the greenhouse, like a whore? Did the Baron treat his mother that way? Philip raged, throwing a rock and smashing it on the pebbly beach. "I hate him; I hate them all!"

Zelda reached out to him. "It's over now, Phil. In any case, though, you deserve a girl of virtue."

Philip took Zelda into his arms. "Hannah Kozminsky is a girl of virtue, as you put it. I think it's time that we put Zelda Kay to rest." Zelda Kay melted away into his embrace. Philip whispered in her ear, "I love you, Hannah."

"I love you too, Phil," she declared. It felt so good to finally be open and honest about who she was and to acknowledge her feelings for Philip Dorr. "I want to shout it from the top of the cliff!"

"Let's shout then," he cried giddily. "Philip Dorr loves Hannah Kozminksy!" resonated across the English Channel. He kissed her again.

Hannah shivered as Philip's kisses trailed down from her ear to her neck to her shoulder. He was nudging at the fabric of her jumper with his nose to expose more of her. Her arms squeezed him tighter and she tucked her hands inside of his jumper. The contact of her hands to his back as she held him tightly against her made his body respond. Philip pushed her away, embarrassed by his arousal growing between them.

"I'm sorry; I'm getting carried away. I should walk you home like a gentleman."

"It's all right, Phil. We can go up to my flat if you'd like."

"I'd like nothing more, Hannah. But I want to do right by you. I need to get you a ring first." Hannah beamed and stroked his cheek in response.

The pair walked back into town together, arm in arm, as if they were floating on a cloud of promise.


	5. Philip, part 3

The same night, 1948

After leaving Hannah at her door with another kiss, Philip meandered slowly back to Sous les Chênes. He was contemplating how to introduce his family to his soon-to-be fiancée. He admired his parents very much for how they had rebuilt their life together alongside their children after years of war and imprisonment. His parents' marriage was more solid than it had ever been, certainly better than when he was a lad. Though they had had separate experiences, all three of them had survived the dehumanizing terror of being prisoners of a military enemy. They understood each other in a way no one perhaps no one else would; each was grateful for their home, nourishment, and a warm bed. Their close family ties were everything to them. It was because of that closeness that Philip was surprised to overhear an echo of the past as he crept up the stairs to his room at Sous les Chênes.

His father's adamant voice was insisting on something and his mother was sobbing. Philip decided to eavesdrop at the open door to the drawing room; he may have been a lousy spy, but Felicity and James were none the wiser.

"Eugénie must go to school in England. You know that she can't stay here." James said delicately, though his gentle-but-firm tone was of no comfort to his sobbing wife.

Felicity responded through her tears, but Philip was unable to make out what she'd said.

James responded. "Please, Felicity. It's not to shun her; it's to protect her! God forgive me for saying it, but the people of St. Gregory are unkind."

Felicity snorted and then composed herself. "You're right about that, James. Of course, you're right about everything," she admitted. From the doorway, he saw his mother look up pleadingly at his father.

She brushed away her tears. "James, please consider this: we could all start again in England. Phil could keep Sous les Chênes; he could be bailiff one day! I've… I've ruined that chance for you. And I can't remain on this island with all the stares and the gossip. Phil is a grown man, and there is no life for me here if Eugénie goes. I want to go to England. But I will only go with you by my side."

James Dorr was dumbstruck by his wife's audacity. He was at a loss for words.

"You could surely leverage one of your connections in Whitehall…" she continued.

"No. Not Whitehall. Not after how they demilitarized and abandoned St. Gregory. I… I will need to think this over."

It was true that James grew more frustrated by the day with his role in the senate. How much longer could the elderly Bailiff LaPalotte go on with James doing his work for him? And yet, James knew that once a new Bailiff came to power, there would be no place for him. The islanders- his people- eyed him and his daughter with suspicion. _Yes, perhaps Felicity is right. Best to pass the baton to Phil…_ James thought.

"I… I have some ideas, James." Felicity said. Philip listened incredulously as his mother shared her pipe dream of opening a business.

"Where would we get the capital, Felicity? The Dorrs are well-off, but not for that kind of investment."

Felicity took a gulp of brandy and found the courage to make a daring suggestion. "James, I believe that there is a bank account in Switzerland..."

"Never!" James roared. "I would sooner sell Sous les Chênes than take _that man's_ blood money! You promised me we would never speak of _HIM_ again."

Philip could only assume that _HIM_ referred to one person- Baron von Rheingarten.

"Of course, James, you're right. That is one of reasons I have to leave St. Gregory; we must bury the past once and for all. But surely you can't think about selling Sous les Chênes. I would do anything for Eugénie's future, but we mustn't neglect Phil's inheritance either."

"You're quite right. We should let Phil know what we are thinking about, even if our plans are not made yet."

Philip, for his part, decided to take that as a cue to silently slink off to bed. He did not want to confront them tonight. He and Hannah would have much to discuss about their future first. She had trusted him with her secrets; it was time for him to share a few as well.

* * *

By the next week, Philip and his parents had all done some thinking, though everyone was still keeping their cards close to their chest. At last gathered at home for Sunday dinner, Philip resolved to tell them about Hannah. He found that he couldn't wait for the right moment to work it into the conversation, so he just blurted out, "mum, dad, I've met someone- a young woman- she's a friend of Angélique Mahy's, actually. And what I'm trying to say is that I'm in love with her and I'd rather like to ask her to marry me."

The Dorrs may have been known for their reserved nature, but his father knocked over his own chair as he leapt up to congratulate his son. Felicity gasped and brought her hands to her heart, "oh, Phil!"

"Tell us, son, what's her name? When do we get to meet her?" James asked.

"Soon, I hope. Hannah is, well, she's…" Philip knew that his parents were not bigoted, yet he always found it hard to tell his parents personal things.

His father tried to rescue him. "Say no more, Phil. I understand. I had this conversation with my own father once. Your girlfriend is pregnant."

"James!" Felicity was mortified at what her husband was admitting to their first born. "Oh Phil, I'm so ashamed."

Phil turned scarlet. "What? Pregnant, no! We've never—never mind that. She's not pregnant, she is Jewish."

"Oh, thank God for that. Babies are a hard way to start a marriage."

"James, you can't tell our son that!" Felicity cried.

Philip was relieved that he was no longer the most uncomfortable person at the table and pressed on with what he had prepared to say. "Hannah is originally German; her family had left Berlin for England in 1933. She was employed as a nanny, and the family she worked for had been vacationing on St. Gregory when the war broke out. Her employers went back to England, but being a German national, she could not return with them. She tried to escape to England with me on the same night I was caught in Jonas' boat. She swam away and spent most of the war in hiding."

Felicity sighed, "the poor dear."

"it doesn't bother you that she is Jewish?"

"Son," James responded, "if this war has taught us anything, it is that we must embrace our common humanity."

"To think that the two of you should have died in the death trap that was the Jonas' boat, and yet you both lived- we will take that as a sign that you are meant to be together." Felicity added. "Does Hannah have family?"

"She lost touch with her family because of the war."

"We will be her family now," Felicity said as she squeezed her son's hand. "I always felt like an outsider in this family, so I pledge to make sure that Hannah feels welcome. Yes, we'll have the perfect wedding for you. One last grand event at Sous les Chênes."

"What do you mean, _last_?"

James and Felicity looked at each other. James spoke, "Son, there is something we have been meaning to tell you. I feel it's best that Eugénie be schooled in England, just as you were. But your mother has made it clear to me that it was a mistake on my part to send you away from your parents when you were so young. So we've decided that we're going to make a fresh start of it, all three of us, in London. Your mother and I would love for you to take over the estate at Sous les Chênes. Consider it a wedding gift. Your Hannah will be thrilled."

Now it was Phil's turn to be at a loss for words. At last he managed, "Such a generous offer, thank you, dad and mum. I will have to talk to Hannah."

Felicity sensed Philip's hesitation. "What is it, Phil?"

"Well, Hannah and I would rather like to go to England ourselves. She lost touch with her family there, but she'd like to have the opportunity to find them. I'd like to re-connect with some of the chaps from Sandhurst, maybe go into business."

The three of them looked at each other and then to little Eugénie, serenely sitting at the table with them. "How do you feel about flowers, Phil?" Felicity asked.

* * *

Several months later on the morning of Philip and Hannah's wedding, Felicity had one last piece of business to attend to on the isle of St. Gregory. The men were still asleep as James had tried to send Philip off with some sort of a stag do the night before. Felicity tried to smuggle little Eugénie out the door without arousing suspicion, however, Delphine the maid caught Felicity at the door. Felicity lied that she needed to run some errands. "In your nice frock for the wedding, ma'am?" Delphine had asked sceptically.

Felicity huffed without answering the maid. "We'll be back before the festivities. I promise."

"Where are we going, mummy?" Little Eugénie asked as her mother placed her in the passenger side of the car.

"Into town, my little love." Felicity drove them to Mr. Isaak's photography shop, still run by June Mahy. Felicity explained to June that she wanted a portrait made of her and her daughter; she furthermore instructed June to keep it a secret.

"That will be a lovely surprise for the senator," June said, naively.

"Quite. Please, June, remember not to say anything when you see us later this afternoon at the wedding."

"Mum's the word, Mrs. Dorr."

The following week, Felicity returned to Isaak's photography shop to collect the portrait and then went onto the post office. She addressed an envelope to the trustee of a secret Swiss bank account and prayed that the photograph and accompanying letter would reach their intended party. She didn't even know if the Baron had survived the war, let alone the Nuremberg trials afterward.

She had longed to pour her heart out in the letter, to tell Heinrich how beautiful their daughter was, to tell him how proud she was of Philip on his wedding day. She knew that Heinrich would be pleased for Philip and Hannah as well. But- not knowing whose eyes would read it- she kept the letter short and to the point. She simply gave her erstwhile lover a forwarding address; the Dorrs were moving on.


	6. James, part 1

1960

James Dorr was waiting for Eugénie when the bus arrived in the village where they lived. Eugénie descended from the bus and didn't see her father for the fog and the tears in her eyes. "Genie!" He called.

"Dad?" She spun around. He held his arms open, and she ran into them.

"Sit down, Genie." They sat on the bench at the bus shelter. "Phil rang. He told me what happened in the shop."

"This Baron." She'd committed the little card to memory now. "Baron Heinrich von Rheingarten. Is he…"

"He is." James answered simply.

"Oh God, dad…"

"Let's go home, sweet Genie. I'll build a fire and we can talk properly."

* * *

Flashback to the port of St. Gregory, July 1941

Kathleen Jonas and her family were waiting anxiously at the port. Her husband Wilf had been imprisoned for nine months for trying to help a spy- Philip Dorr- escape to England in his boat, the Little Mary. Wilf was meant to be released and sent home from a POW camp in France. Kath huddled with her son, brother, and belle-mère as a cold wind blew.

Angélique Mahy approached the Jonas family on the quai. "Mrs. Jonas! They said at the Government House that the boat should be on its way with both the constable and Senator Dorr on board."

Sheldon Levesque, Kath's brother and man about town, spoke up. "Well, where is that Felicity Dorr? I've made several supply runs to Sous les Chênes, and I haven't seen her out in the gardens as usual. I don't think anyone has seen her for weeks. If my house were crawling with Nazis I would certainly want to get out more."

Angélique answered, "Mrs. Dorr is unwell today. She asked me to come to meet the senator."

Ada Jonas, Wilf's mother, clucked. "Unwell? What kind of a wife wouldn't wait to greet her husband after nine months? That's not right."

Angélique defended Felicity Dorr. "Be kind to her, Mrs. Jonas, Mrs. Dorr saved your son's life. She interceded with Baron von Rheingarten to spare your Wilf, Phil, and the senator."

Kath Jonas remembered her own ordeal at the hands of the Germans, imprisoned in a Nazi hospital by men intent on proving that she was a promiscuous woman with venereal disease. Being tied to that bed and forcibly examined was tantamount to rape. Kath began to fear that Felicity may have had a similar experience.

"Oh Lord, Sheldon's right! She's been alone in that big house invaded by German officers all this time. Angélique, has the Baron… done something to Mrs. Dorr?"

"No, no, everything is fine!" Angélique protested, in a way that seemed to indicate the opposite.

"But now she has disappeared from view? Angélique, have you actually seen her?"

"Yes, of course, just this morning."

"Angélique, is Mrs. Dorr with child?"

Angélique's look of panic confirmed Kath Jonas' suspicion. "No one must know!" Angélique wailed.

"The secret is safe with us. We will always be grateful to Mrs. Dorr for saving our Wilf."

"Mum! The boat!" young Colin Jonas cried. A vessel had appeared over the horizon and was approaching the port. As soon as they could discern figures on board, the Jonas family saw their Wilf waving. As he came into focus, they saw him smile from ear to ear despite his ordeal.

Wilf would have loved nothing more than to run to Kath's arms, but he was laden by his compatriot who could barely stand. Kath ran to him and propped up Senator Dorr on the other side.

"Good heavens! Senator Dorr, are you all right?" The senator lifted his head in response, but his glassy eyes seemed not to focus.

"Ya cannet tell from his face, Kath, but they beat him up pretty bad 'bout a week ago. They broke the skin and his wounds are starting to fester." His trench coat concealed the bruises, but some blood and pus had seeped through his clothing.

"Aye, fever's set in," Kath said as she held the back of her hand to James' face.

Senator Dorr seemed to register that, so Angélique tried to talk to him. "Sir? Look at me, sir. I'm going to see you back to Sous les Chênes. Mrs. Dorr is waiting for you."

"Felicity…" his voice creaked as his knees buckled. The Jonases kept him from falling.

Angélique looked up helplessly. "What are we going to do? He'll never make it on the bicycle and with the vehicle ban…"

"Leave that to me," said Sheldon with a wink. "Kath, have you got any potatoes? I think I need to make a delivery to Sous les Chênes."

* * *

Felicity had been pacing nervously all day since Angélique had left her with the news that her husband should return to her today. Her worry was anything but assuaged when a barely conscious Senator Dorr was delivered back to Sous les Chênes in the back of a pick-up truck by Sheldon Leveque. Sheldon helped Felicity get James upstairs to bed before he took his leave. "Don't worry, Mrs. Dorr," he'd said. "I am good at keeping secrets." Felicity nodded in gratitude.

Felicity gasped with horror when she removed James' clothes. She cleaned and dressed his putrid wounds and stayed with James through the worst of his fever, applying a cool compress and trying to give him water to drink.

"Are you sure that's wise, ma'am? In your condition?" Delphine the maid asked. It was the first time that Delphine had expressed any concern for Felicity's pregnancy, though she had been casting judgmental looks for months. Delphine's loyalty was to the Dorrs and the same maid who didn't want the Nazis to have James' mother's linens wasn't too keen on the current Mrs. Dorr's infidelity.

"He is my husband, for Heaven's sake! And I don't think that being beaten is contagious, though with Flach in charge one never knows."

James told Felicity repeatedly how much he loved her, but she wondered if that would still be true once he was no longer delirious. "Everything will be all right, James." She whispered, though she had a hard time believing it herself.

At last his fever broke. When James awoke drenched in sweat, he tried to sit up to meet his wife at his side but instead he groaned in pain. His eyes focused on the woman sleeping in the chair beside him wrapped in a blanket, blonde hair undone. Even bedraggled with exhaustion, James thought that she had a certain glow about her.

"James?" Her voice was timid as she awoke to his groan.

"Felicity." He whispered back, as she leaned in to mop his brow. "I dreamed of this moment for so long, being home with you at Sous les Chênes." She hung her head in shame and shook it negatively. "What is it, my love?"

She looked at him, her eyes wide with fear as she spoke. "I have betrayed you, James."

"You did what you had to do. You saved my life and Phil's. That's all that matters."

"It's not that simple." Felicity rose from the chair and shed the blanket. As she walked to the fireplace, James noticed her burgeoning belly. She was a very thin woman so her betrayal was unmistakable. She took an envelope from the mantle and crossed the room again. Her hand trembled as she handed the envelope to her husband.

He ran his fingers under the wax seal. This is what he read:

 _Senator Dorr,_

 _Your wife is an honourable woman. Any stain upon her virtue is my fault and my fault alone. As you are no doubt aware, there have been unintended consequences to my presence here. At Mrs. Dorr's request, I am leaving Sous les Chênes. I will seek to be transferred away from St. Gregory. I plan to initiate a bank account in Switzerland to assure that the child is provided for. I will see that you have access regardless of the status of this war and its outcome. I trust that you will not repudiate your wife and her child._

 _Oberst Baron Heinrich von Rheingarten_

James Dorr handed the letter back to his wife. "Burn this," he commanded despite his weakened state. Felicity hesitated. "Burn it, I said."

Felicity examined the letter in her hand. She knew that the light that Heinrich had cast on the situation was not entirely true. With one last look at her lover's handwriting, she threw the letter on the fire.

She turned to James. "All I can do is ask that one day you might forgive me."

"Leave me now." He said as he rolled his head away from her.

* * *

Felicity returned to James' room, around noon with some broth. He turned his head away from her. "Please James, you need to eat something to get your strength back. Then you may proceed to hate me with all your will."

James accepted the first spoonful from her then asked her to surrender the spoon. "I can do this by myself."

"I'll leave you to it then."

Throughout his imprisonment, Felicity's last words to him _I love you and I want you home soon_ had sustained him. He'd repeated them so often in his mind that he'd forgotten his own words to her- _you've achieved something remarkable with the Baron, and whatever it took, I understand._ He cringed as he considered the ramifications of his words. James remembered another day at the harbour: after the bombing. He'd come looking for Felicity and found her dazed and bloody, but alive. He was so grateful for her life; why did it take a bombing for him to tell her that he wanted her to stay? She told him to hold her; now he wished that he had never let go.

* * *

James hobbled into the drawing room later that afternoon like a man who was unsure of where he was and where he was going. "James, you're dressed!" Felicity cried as she put down her knitting and went to him. "You ought to be back in bed!"

"I need some fresh air. It was so stagnant in that prison. Will you walk with me? Guide me?"

She stood up and took his arm. Together, they ambled to the orchard. James seemed to be leading Felicity towards a certain tree stump. The tree had been felled lest it serve as a memorial to Eugène Lasalle. He stopped in front of the tree stump.

"Not here, James. Please."

"Yes, Felicity. I was so foolish to believe that Eugène Lasalle would be treated according to the Geneva Conventions. I caused another man's son to lose his life. It seems fitting that this is where I commit to raising another man's child."

"Oh James, penance?" Felicity wimpered.

"No, redemption." He placed his hand on her middle. "We will never speak of Baron von Rheingarten again. This is my baby, Felicity. Are we agreed?"

"Yes." She wiped away a tear and kissed him tenderly.


	7. James, part 2

Fall 1941

Only a few short months later, James was peddling swiftly along the windswept roads on his bicycle to escort the midwife to Sous les Chênes.

When he'd become a father for the first time, young James was barely twenty years old. He spent the night in the parlour with his own father and other senators who were smoking cigars, pouring brandy, and clapping the lad on the back as they awaited a little Dorr. How they'd howled with joy when "it's a boy" was announced!

This time, James was old enough to know better. There had been nannies and supplies in abundance for Philip; this baby would be his and Felicity's responsibility in a time of austerity. He was sat outside the room that he was forbidden to enter. "It won't be long, now," Delphine the maid had told him when he'd shown the midwife to his wife's room, though to him it seemed like an eternity. Felicity's low howls reminded him in a terrible way of the moans he'd heard coming from the interrogation rooms of the POW camp.

Later, as Delphine presented him with a gurgling baby girl, he asked to see his wife. "Soon; the midwife is still working," she said. He sat alone with the gurgling bundle and felt the enormity of fatherhood engulf him.

Delphine came back out with a sack of bloodied laundry. James grew pale at the site. "Were there complications?" he asked.

"No, everything went smoothly. She is a big baby, though, especially given the size of her mother."

 _No way to pretend that you were pre-mature, then._ James thought as he looked down at his little bundle.

"Can I see her now?" He mustered.

"A few minutes more, senator."

At last, James was admitted to the bedroom and planted a kiss on Felicity's forehead before sitting by her side, still holding their daughter. "She's a girl, James." Felicity murmured.

"And a beautiful girl she is. I want to call her Eugénie," he said.

"Eugène Lasalle. Always with us?" Felicity cringed at the suggestion.

"It's important to me." James said.

"All right." Felicity wearily conceded. "Eugénie Rose, then." _For the roses in Brahms' lullaby and all the time that Heinrich and I spent in the garden..._

* * *

September 1942

Not being able to work at the Senate grated on James' nerves, but it gave him the opportunity to become a doting father to his little girl. He spent most days with Felicity and Eugénie, and though the news of the war was always bleak, the Dorr family seemed to coalesce during the occupation. James couldn't stand knowing that forced labourers were building fortifications on his island, but his home and family always served as a refuge. It was almost a relief to not be involved in the government.

After the British took German civilians as prisoners in Iran, Hitler decided to take revenge on the only British citizens he had under his thumb: the English-born residents of the Channel Islands. The island-born themselves were spared, but those born on English soil like Felicity were to be deported to a prison in Germany. James had hoped to keep Felicity safe as the wife of a former senator when the deportations started, but Obermeister Flach had other ideas. That fateful day he surged into the drawing room at Sous les Chênes with a cadre of troops.

"It is time to go Mrs. Dorr. I wish to allow you to leave in dignity."

"I can't leave my baby." Felicity said, cradling Eugénie. "She is still nursing."

"Of course. The child will come as well."

"Over my dead body! You will never take my daughter!" Felicity cried.

James tried to reason with Flach. "Please, Obermeister, we have always collaborated with you and the commandant."

"You mean the former commandant. But no matter. These orders come directly from Herr Hitler. Not even your Baron can save you now. Men! Apprehend her."

The soldiers moved to apprehend Felicity, who crumpled to the ground around her baby.

"No! Stop! The child was born on St. Gregory; she stays!" James choked on his words, knowing that by saving his daughter he was consenting to the Nazis taking his wife. He watched the soldiers drag his wife to her feet. "I'm so sorry, Felicity. Trust me with Eugénie. I will keep her safe. She can't go to a prison."

Felicity was sobbing but managed a "yes, James." James approached her to kiss her one last time and take the babe from her arms. "I love you." He whispered, not wanting to be overly sentimental in front of the soldiers who held back Felicity's arms.

"I love you, too, James. Take care of our sweet Eugénie."

The baby began to shriek as the soldiers marched her mother away. James held Eugénie tightly and began to weep himself.

* * *

Delphine the maid returned home that evening from her errands in the village frustrated and unsure of what to tell the senator. "I'm sorry, sir, but I was unable to find a nurse for Miss Eugénie. I will start some mush for her."

"No nurse, in all of St. Gregory? Rubbish. I supposed that I will have to take care of it myself."

The next day, James Dorr went to the estate of his colleague Senator Martin, whose tenant farmer's wife had recently had a child. He explained the situation of his wife's deportation.

"I'll pay you whatever I can. Please, Mr. Robidoux, would your wife nurse my daughter?"

Mr. Robidoux was suitably embarrassed but not at all shy about sharing his views.

"I'm sorry, senator. I respect you and believe you to be a noble man, but my wife will not suckle that Nazi bastard."

James Dorr stood still from shock. No one on 'his island' had ever dared refuse him anything. Despite everything the Nazis had taken from him- including his wife- no betrayal stung more than when it came from his own people.

That was the day that St. Gregory stopped feeling like home to James Dorr.

* * *

1960

The fire crackled in the fireplace as James tried to answer Eugénie's questions as simply and tactfully as possible. "This war turned the world upside-down and nothing made sense anymore. To this day, I am filled with hatred for Baron von Rheingarten. But he entrusted to me the most extraordinary little person I have ever met- you."

"And mum? Does she hate the Baron as much as you and Phil?"

"I can't answer that for her. But she's taken this rather hard, I'm afraid. She was quite hysterical when Phil rang. She is devastated by what you and Phil must think. Phil said he'd come first thing in the morning; Hannah will mind the store. Mum's taken a sleeping pill to help calm her down. She promised me that we'll all have a decent chat in the morning."

Eugénie nodded.

"Please remember that no matter what, Eugénie Rose Dorr, I am your father. I always have been, and I always will be."


	8. Felicity, part 1

1960

Felicity Dorr was sat in her bed, trembling with anxious anticipation. She'd taken a sleeping pill, but nothing would settle her nerves tonight. She had always dreamed that one day she might see Heinrich again, but now that it looked like she may have her wish she was terrified of the consequences. When James had told her about Philip's call, she broke down. Would this ruin her daughter's life? And even if Eugénie could accept the truth, would she ever forgive her mother for concealing her paternity? James had held Felicity as she fell completely to pieces; he was so good to her despite the circumstances. And yet, Felicity questioned herself, ashamed. Could she remain faithful to James if Heinrich were to re-enter their lives? She loved James and the new start they had made together. But Heinrich… a phantom lust seized her as she recalled the night she first waited for him to come to her bed.

* * *

flashback to 1940

It was a cool fall day and Felicity had walked to La Roche Noire to clear her mind. The waves ebbed and flowed against the pebbly beach and seemed to whisper to her _I love you and I want you home soon_ \- her last words to her husband before he was deported to a POW camp in France. She had come to the beach instead of her usual refuge- her orchard.

The day that Philip had been captured, she had been desperate to save him. Her undignified proposal to the Baron still stung. _We can have sex, as much sex as you want._ Though the Baron never sought to redeem that offer, he did take the liberty of joining her in the orchard as often as he pleased. 'Good evening, Mrs. Dorr,' he would say. She wouldn't tell him to leave, but she had nothing more to say in the way of small talk. What is there left to say after offering one's body to one's jailer? So, with a nod, she allowed him to sit on the bench beside her. She would continue to puff on her cigarette in silence. He didn't seem to mind, but to Felicity, it was damned awkward.

The Baron's visits to her in the orchard were taking their toll on her sanity. Every time she went to the orchard she wondered obsessively if or when he would join her- and more frighteningly, if she wanted him to. Yes, that was the problem. She was afraid that she did indeed want him.

The mere thought of it made her want to throw herself into the channel. Making an offer to save her son was one thing, but this was so much more. How could she desire an enemy thug? It was an existential crisis. The sea was getting rough and waves crashed violently across the rocks, inviting her to drown herself into the water. Suicide would be a release from her prison…

But if she ended it all, she would never know. She would never know if Philip would survive being caught as a spy; she would never know if James was coming back to her; she would never know the Baron's touch. By now she knew that she was quite mad, but for whichever of these three reasons that prevailed upon her, she turned around and headed back to Sous les Chênes.

A front was coming through. _A storm front or a military front?_ she mused. Though it was still early afternoon, the sky darkened. Felicity barely noticed when the rain started beating against her face. When the winds picked up, however, a chill seized her. This autumn wind was the harbinger of winter, striping trees of their leaves that were swirling through the air. For a few moments she thought that she might freeze to death en route, but she dismissed that as nonsense. _Just a few more miles, old girl. If if I was meant to die today, I would have thrown myself in the channel._

Fate intervened at that moment. She recognized the sound of the motor she heard roaring down the road. It was her husband's car- but she knew that her husband was not the driver, of course. The car came to a stop beside her on the side of the road. She held her hat in place on her head and looked up at the vehicle. Baron von Rheingarten opened the door and barked, "Get in, Mrs. Dorr. I'll have no argument from you."

She accepted her fate and climbed into the back seat with him.

"Quite a storm, wouldn't you say, Mrs. Dorr?"

She nodded, but it was hard to discern as she was shivering. The Baron unbuttoned his uniform and tried to drape the coat over her shoulders. She swatted his hand away and threw the coat down, the medals clanging as they went. "Never!" She cried through her chattering teeth.

"But surely you need something warm."

She folded her arms across herself to try to control the trembling. "I will not wear that even if my life depends on it!"

"If you will not have the coat, then perhaps the man? Come here, Mrs. Dorr." The Baron wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly, mostly because he expected her to resist. He was surprised to find that she did not struggle.

She burrowed her face in his undershirt and morbid thoughts came back to her as she took in his musky scent. If she was to take her own life, she should give herself a good reason. Give in to the temptation before ending it all. Her forehead made contact with his neck. She needed his warmth so desperately. He held her for a few moments there, but she craved more flesh to flesh contact. She tucked her head between his jaw and collarbone and her lips found his neck.

He exhaled and nuzzled his head against her in response. Coming to his senses, he righted himself. "I know that an offer was made, but I will remind you that you have no obligation to me, Mrs. Dorr. I shall not have you do anything against your will."

"No? Actually, you make a habit of it, Baron. The fortifications are a prime example. As an occupying force, you make the people of St. Gregory do things against their will every day."

The Baron smirked for that was the audacious Felicity Dorr that he knew. "Not sexually," he clarified.

"Good. Because I do not do things against my will, sexually or otherwise." She said, and pressed her lips to his. This time, he reciprocated passionately.

The Baron's driver, a German soldier following Wilf Jonas' betrayal, stared straight ahead and did his best to pretend he did not see what was happening through the rear-view mirror. He sat in the drive in front of the house and did not know what to do. He was wise enough to know that he should not go open the Baron's door.

"We're home, Mrs. Dorr." The Baron whispered.

"Felicity, please." She prompted.

"I would suggest that we meet in the orchard, Felicity, but it seems the weather has other plans for us. Later this evening, if I were to build a fire in the drawing room, I would be most edified if you were to come and sit with me. You may call me Heinrich, if it pleases you."

"It does, Heinrich."

"Very good. In the meantime, I have some business to attend to and you need some time to take care of yourself." He placed a kiss to her hand before helping her down from the car.

* * *

That evening after dinner Heinrich was building a fire in the drawing room. All he could think of was the day that he'd cruelly tricked Felicity into giving up her son. She was on her knees, cleaning a fireplace on her side of the house when he'd given her the news of Mr. Brotherson's arrest. Her reaction- gasping for air- was not what he expected. So he baited her.

He'd told her that Mr. Brotherson had implicated her and the senator when of course he had done no such thing. Then Felicity let the whole story come tumbling out- Mr. Brotherson was none other than her son, Philip Dorr. Heinrich had been clever, maliciously so. As the commandant he felt no remorse, though he couldn't quell that niggling feeling that he'd exploited someone he'd come to care for. To soothe his conscience, he'd kept Mr. Brotherson's identity a secret and traded execution for prison. But Philip and James Dorr would have to go, that was non-negotiable. He couldn't bring himself to accept Felicity's offer, no matter how many times he'd lay awake at night thinking of her, not when he had abused her trusting nature so.

And then Felicity had gone and kissed him. They both knew that it was the point of no return. He'd thought about the kiss and how he wanted to pursue her all afternoon through dinner. Muller had noted how distracted he was. Now he was on his knees, before the fireplace, just as she had been that day when he tricked her.

The kindling had spread its flames to the larger logs; he was satisfied with his work and turned around. There he found Felicity on the couch with her needlework. He hadn't heard her come in. She'd changed clothes and had had a bath; he could tell by the way her hair looked clean but un-styled.

"Felicity. How long have you been here?"

"A few minutes. You were intently gazing into the fire, so I thought I'd best leave you to it." He stared at her incredulously, still not believing that she had come to him. She thought she recognized a hint of lust in his eyes; she looked back down at her embroidery, suddenly unsure of herself again.

"Might I pour us a drink?" He ventured.

"Yes, Heinrich." She liked saying his name.

"I think I know how to make this easier, Felicity, bridging the gulf between us" he said as he sat next to her on the couch and handed her a drink. "You worry too much about symbolism."

"How do you mean?" She asked as she put down the embroidery hoop and raised the glass to her lips. She took a sip.

"My uniform bothers you, but you are happy to sit with me in my civilian clothes. I will remember that the next time I try to sit with you in the orchard."

She looked at him in his clean white shirt and suspenders clipped to his trousers and found no trace of rancor within her. "I suppose you're right."

He moved his hand to her knee. "Not here, where someone could come in," she whispered.

"Yes, of course, you are right." He answered, retracting his hand though he desired to touch her more than anything.

"Delphine, my maid, retires by ten o'clock without exception. If I were to leave my bedroom door unlocked tonight…"

He nodded. "You can rely on me to be discrete. Until then?"

"Until then, you can put a record on the gramophone and I will work on my embroidery as we enjoy the fire you've built."

"Right." He got up to put on some music. "Do you enjoy all types of needlework, Felicity? You could knit yourself a scarf to stay warm this winter."

"I'm afraid I'm not a very practical person, Heinrich."

"Then I shall have to build fires for you more often as the weather turns colder."

"I'd like that." The thought gave both of them something to live for, something that Felicity desperately needed.

Suddenly Muller appeared in the doorway. "Sir," he interrupted. "Obermeister Flach needs to speak with you."

"Tell Flach to wait in my office." The Baron snapped at Muller. "Please excuse me, Mrs. Dorr."

"Of course, Baron," Felicity said with icy formality. Felicity lowered her head to her needlework, scared of her growing affection for Heinrich and excited by the danger it would bring her.

* * *

That night Felicity waited, poised on her bed. Then she got up to sit at her vanity again to check her hair, loose and intentionally tousled. Then she paced the floor. At midnight, she resigned herself to the idea that Heinrich was not coming. _Rejected, again._

She tried to sleep but was unable to anything but toss and turn. In the still of the night, she thought she heard a noise in front of the house- the slam of a car door. She got up from her bed and ran to the window in time to see a car driving away in the moonlight. _Flach, perhaps?_ She was still in front of the window when she began to hear heavy, slow footsteps approach her door.

The door opened just wide enough for Heinrich to enter. "I was afraid that you weren't coming," she confessed, relieved to see him.

He came over to her at the window. "There were… things I had to attend to, and something that I had to find."

"Please, I'd rather not know. Let this space be a sanctuary from the war."

"Agreed." He took her in his arms and kissed her like a conqueror triumphant. As she pulled away from him, he was afraid for a moment that he had frightened her with his ardent desire. But then he realised that she was leading him to her bed.

He removed something from his pocket. "I was late in coming to you because I wanted to have this. Have you ever used one of these?" He asked, showing her a French letter.

"No," she whispered.

"Then it will be a first for both of us."

She smiled and caressed the front of his trousers. "Fortunately, I have acquired a supply." He said.

The knot of her dressing gown slid apart as she moved towards the bed, letting the robe fall open and exposing glimpses of her front. She sat on the bed in front of him; she helped him unhook his suspenders and belt as he unbuttoned his shirt. He swallowed and sat on the bed, methodically bending down to untie his shoes before removing them along with his trousers. Felicity reclined on the bed, watching him, taking deep breaths to try to calm her heart that was beating out of control.

He carefully folded his clothing and crossed the room again to put the garments on a chair. Naked, but without the slightest hesitation, he strode towards her. Moments later he was exactly where she wanted him to be and the two engaged in a timeless dance.

* * *

Some time later, Felicity's tears rolled down to Heinrich's chest. "Did I hurt you, Felicity?"

"No, Heinrich. This war… nothing has made sense since it began. Now, finally something feels right. Is that horrible of me?"

"If it is, then it is horrible of both of us, because I too feel that it is right to be here with you."

They slept entwined until just before the break of dawn. As Heinrich dressed, he asked, "may I come to you again tonight?"

"Yes, Heinrich. But please be careful."

"You have my word. And you mustn't come to me. If I am caught here, my men will know that I am… how would you say it? A randy old man." She couldn't help but grin at his expression despite his serious tone. "But if you are caught going to my room, on the other hand, the consequences could be far worse." He kissed her one last time before slinking away into the darkness. "Until tonight, _liebe_ Felicity."


	9. Felicity, part 2

Felicity and Heinrich continued to share her bed most nights, more for comfort than sex, though the later still occurred with an agreeable frequency. The expressed themselves physically, though always in silence, always fearing the creaking of her bed might alert her maid. Despite their efforts, the Baron's relationship with Mrs. Dorr became the worst kept secret at Sous les Chênes; it was common knowledge that the two would companionably sit together in the evenings by the fire. That alone served to arouse suspicions of staff and soldiers alike.

The fall of 1940 segued into winter 1941, and when Felicity and Heinrich were fortunate to have a day of comparatively mild weather, the two still met in the orchard. One such evening, Heinrich pulled Felicity into a tight kiss that she continued to deepen. Desperately groping at each other under their warm outer wear, Felicity whispered, "Heinrich, should we repair to the greenhouse?"

He was surprised by the suggestion, but she did her best to convince him of their shared urgency. "Shouldn't I go back to the house for a French letter at least?"

"Don't go; I doubt it even makes a difference. I tried for years to conceive after Phil with no luck, and that chance gets less and less likely every year. Don't you dare ask how old I really am, Heinrich."

"An ageless beauty." He relented with a grin. She had prepared a camping bed- where Phil had once slept- and blankets, though they were hardly comfortable for it was a tumultuous night. At last, they unbridled their passion, the expression of their love silent no more. It was a release for both of them.

It was that night that Felicity conceived a child by Heinrich.

* * *

She was in denial for some time, though eventually she knew that she could not blame the dizziness and her heart's frantic beat at the slightest exertion on the stress of the war. Heinrich noticed that she was withdrawn, like a phantom in the same room. "Are you unwell?" He asked one night in by the fire in the drawing room.

"I'm fine." She responded without lifting her eyes from her embroidery.

"Then you are upset about something?"

She demurred. "I think I need some fresh air. I am going to the garden."

"It's past curfew, Felicity." She shot him a dirty look that said, 'I don't give a toss about curfew.' He tried to appeal to her reason. "Furthermore, the weather is inclement."

 _Clemency_ , she thought. That is what I need, but I will need to ask it of my husband. She got up to leave.

* * *

Heinrich found her on their favourite bench in the garden despite the chill of an early spring night. She was puffing on a cigarette. It was her third; he noticed two other stubs still glowing in the ashtray.

"What is troubling you, Felicity?"

"I am expecting." She said matter-of-factly and took another drag from her cigarette.

"What is it that you are expecting? A letter from the senator?" He said, naively.

"Hardly. How do you say 'baby' in German? I believe it is a word we have in common." The Baron, unflappable even in the heat of military combat, was suddenly shaking his head at a loss. They sat in silence for some time before he muttered, "scheisse." She offered him her cigarette which he accepted.

After the cigarette had calmed his nerves, he spoke. "I will make arrangements. It will be taken care of discretely so that no one need know."

"No." She said. "I will have the baby."

"That is not an option. You will destroy us both. And the senator."

"I may never see my Philip again. And think of your Manfred. We both know that Phil might share his fate as a casualty of war. This is my last chance to be someone's mother."

"I cannot be a father to this child. You know that."

"Of course I do. You will have to leave Sous les Chênes when James comes back."

Heinrich began to understand. Felicity was pulling away from him… and he could not abide that.

"What makes you think that Senator Dorr will forgive you?"

"He suspected me of infidelity before," she said, thinking of her friend Urban Mahy. "It wasn't true, of course- I never betrayed him before you. But he lived for years assuming that it was. James is quite good at keeping up appearances."

Heinrich struggled to keep his fury in check. He wanted to grab her and shake the sense into her. _No baby, Felicity. End it now_. He searched her eyes and found her firm look of determination. He was used to having his way and meting out punishments when he didn't. His impulse was to throttle her into submission. But he had seen soldiers beat women whom they had already misused, and it disgusted him. He would never become that.

Instead Heinrich walked away.

* * *

Felicity and Heinrich avoided each other for several days. He busied himself overseeing the construction of new fortifications, though Felicity's condition was never far from his mind. He needed her and found that he could abstain no longer from her bedroom. He crept up the stairs as he had so many nights before and prayed that her room would not be locked. He was relieved to find that the knob turned and the door swung open. Felicity was asleep, or rather faking sleep, he correctly surmised. She lay still wondering what he would do- beg her for forgiveness or smother her with a pillow? She'd sensed his anger the other day as he walked away from her. Heinrich stood over her a while watching until she stirred, giving herself away.

"Am I still welcome here?" He finally asked. She was relieved but muttered a non-committal 'yes.' Heinrich hastily stripped to his underclothes. He joined her in bed but she rolled the other way. It may have been a bit passive-aggressive on her part, but he took it as an invitation to spoon himself against her back. She sighed and responded by pulling his arm tighter around her.

"I was going to kill myself, you know, on the day that you found me in the rain coming back from la Roche Noire."

"I had no idea."

"I felt that I had nothing more to lose, so I decided that I would make love to you before I died. That was meant to be the end, yet you sparked something inside of me, Heinrich. Now there is a baby, and that brings a new reason to live even if we can't be together. I don't know what will happen, but I will keep going forward. All I can do is pray for James and Phil to come home- as I will pray for you when you will have left Sous les Chênes. I will pray for you and your last son to return safely to your wife because I have come to love you very much- even though it defies reason."

"And I you. I have missed sleeping at your side these last nights. As I will miss you terribly once our paths may no longer cross. Let's get some sleep now, _liebe_ Felicity."

When morning came, Heinrich and Felicity were still intertwined. "Heinrich," she tried to rouse him. "You must go before someone sees you."

"Mmm, yes. I must go. One day, I will leave you for good, Felicity. I cannot abide watching another man raise my child. So I will leave Sous les Chênes full of regret- but not yet. Until that day comes, I have something to ask of you. I want to be with you, and we shall be happy together. We will enjoy our brief happiness until the senator returns. For now, let us pretend that this baby is meant to bring us together rather than drive us apart." He rubbed her stomach affectionately.

"Our baby, Heinrich," she corrected him as she drew him into a kiss. "Yes, we will be happy for whatever time we have together."


	10. Felicity, part 3

Spring, 1941

The halcyon days of Felicity and Heinrich were abruptly ended by a telegram from Berlin. Heinrich stared at it in disbelief, devastated to learn that he would be leaving- but relieved to know that he was not going to the front. Nevertheless, Felicity was shattered when he shared his news with her in the drawing room that evening.

"I didn't ask for this, Felicity. I swear it; I had intended to leave Sous les Chênes, not the isle of St. Gregory all together. True, I had asked an old school mate to make some informal inquiries on my behalf, but it seems that Herr Hitler is impressed with my record here. It is a model occupation, after all."

"A model of brutality and repression, yes, you can be very proud of yourself." She snarled. "I hope that you enjoy hobnobbing in Vichy." She knew very well that the posh spa resort-turned-capital of France was not the ideal milieu for one as disciplined as Heinrich. He was well suited to lording over the tiny island; now he would work alongside the French government as it collaborated with Hitler.

He placed his hands firmly on her shoulders. "Don't be like that, Felicity. We both knew this day would come. Senator Dorr will be released in a month's time and you and your family will move on with your lives. It is for the best that I not be here to stand in your way."

* * *

On the night before he was to depart, there were many final details for Heinrich to attend to as he passed the role of commandant to Obermeister Flach. One letter troubled him more than the rest, however, and it had nothing to do with governance. He went through several drafts before sealing it with wax. As he did this, Felicity entered his office in her night clothes.

"Mrs. Dorr, you should not be here."

"I don't care. I need to see you, to hold you one last time." She tried to giving him a loving look, but something prevented it. "And take off that monstrous uniform before you come to my bed." She turned on her heels to scurry away, but he called after her.

"Wait, there is one last piece of business to attend to." He handed her the envelope that pained him so. On the front he had scrawled, _Senator Dorr_. "You will give this to him, yes?"

"Only if you can assure me that I will not regret it."

"It is a peace offering between us, even if our nations are at war."

"All right."

* * *

Heinrich did come to Felicity's bedroom one last time. She gave him a sad but brave smile as he regarded her lying on her side with a pillow propped under her stomach. "I want you one more time," she said, reaching for him. He joined her on the bed, side-lying behind her, kissing the nape of her neck down and along her collarbone as his arm wrapped around her front. They made love tenderly. He did not sleep afterwards despite his exhaustion. Heinrich traced his hands all over her body, wanting to memorize the feel of her to take with him. His caresses kept returning to the mound protruding from her stomach. Felicity awoke.

"Try to get some sleep, Heinrich," she said. "It's for the best. You've said so yourself."

"I know. But I am sad that I will not know my son."

"How do you know that he is a boy?"

"I have fathered two sons; you also have a son. I felt him move; he is strong within you. Yet he will be different from my boys; he will speak English. He will not know of his German heritage. Would that I could impart that to him now."

Heinrich lowered his voice and began to sing softly a melody that Felicity recognized as Brahm's lullaby.

Guten Abend, gute Nacht,  
mit Rosen bedacht,  
mit Näglein besteckt,  
schlupf unter die Deck:  
Morgen früh, wenn Gott will,  
wirst du wieder geweckt,  
morgen früh, wenn Gott will,  
wirst du wieder geweckt.

The haunted melody made her cry. The two clung to each other as tightly as they could. Just before dawn, Heinrich got up and dressed. "Oh, Heinrich," she whispered. "I will miss you."

He laid a final kiss to Felicity's belly, then to her lips. "Fare thee well, _liebe_ Felicity."


	11. Felicity, part 4

summer-fall 1941

There was a lonely period of adjustment between Heinrich's departure and James' return; Felicity was grateful for the time to sort out her feelings though. She knew that James would accept the situation, but he surprised her by how devoted he became. He now needed Felicity's love as much as she needed his forgiveness. Prison had been difficult; he clung to Felicity at night and let her soothe his nightmares. It was not the forbidden passion that she had shared with Heinrich, but Felicity and James shared a mature and abiding love. They were settled; they would stand by one another.

James couldn't go back to work at the senate, so he tried to stay busy with odd jobs around the estate as Mr Brotherson once had (and just as ineptly, Felicity might add). But more often than not, he remained at Felicity's side.

Felicity was grateful that Angélique showed up with some government documents for him to review- sub rosa, of course- on the day that her pains started. She had been so frightened the first time she gave birth, confined to bed for nearly two days as Philip had taken his time in arriving. She did not want James or anyone else fussing while she was only experiencing mild discomfort, so she was glad that he would be ensconced in his office for hours.

Felicity had kept herself hidden away inside her wing of Sous les Chênes for months now because she did not want others to know of her condition, but suddenly, remembering her confinement with Philip, she wanted nothing more than to get some fresh air. She decided to take a walk to move the baby along.

She had walked deep into the woods behind the orchard before stopping to be sick and coming to rest in a bed of pines. It was unseasonably warm for the fall; birds still warbled. Her senses were heightened in her current state, and she noticed that the forest was teeming with life despite the fact that winter loomed. Her pains were coming more regularly now, and she realised that her second labour would be faster than the first. The thought came to her that she didn't have to go back- that she could birth her baby her in the woods away from everyone's prying eyes.

But a particularly strong contraction came and she remembered how arduous and exhausting her labour had been with Philip. Surely she would need help after the birth to make sure the baby survived. Yes, she wanted her baby to live. That thought propelled her back towards Sous les Chênes, gaining as much ground as she could between the pangs that threatened to bring her to her knees.

At last back in her orchard, she paused for a moment at the tree stump that marked the spot where Eugène Lasalle had been killed. A new wave of pressure gripped her insides and she felt her waters rupture and begin to trickle down her legs. She prayed for Eugène's soul and the life of her soon to be born child.

Sneaking quietly around the back of the house, she entered the kitchen. Delphine took one look at her and flew to her side. Whatever misgivings Delphine had about Felicity were set aside to make way for the newest Dorr. "I'm fine, really, just help me upstairs, Delpine." Felicity panted, through a contraction.

Delphine guided her towards the stairs, where they had the misfortune of running into Obermeister Flach and Muller. Flach saw the women slowly progressing up the stairs in tandem and tutted, "Oh dear, Mrs. Dorr, shall I wire the Baron?"

Felicity bared her teeth at Flach. "You will do no such thing! You will find my husband in his study and tell him to send for the midwife."

"Do you dare to give me orders, Mrs. Dorr?" Flach barked.

Felicity bit her lip, trying not to scream, as once more she felt the pressure tightening within her.

"I'll notify Mr. Dorr, with your permission of course, sir," Muller said.

"Just go, Muller." Flach said dismissively. Delphine pried Felicity's fingers off the banister and helped her to her room.

Felicity was so entranced by bringing her child into the world that she barely noticed when the midwife finally arrived. She was sat up against the pillows, eyes clamped shut, sweating profusely from her effort. In both fists she gripped the bloodied sheet that was tented across her knees.

"I told her to lay back and try to relax until you arrived, but she wasn't having any of it," a panicky Delphine squawked in apology to the midwife as Felicity strained.

"Of course not. It is her time." The midwife said as she hurried to Felicity's aid. "Go get us a basin of fresh water and more towels."

Felicity did not hear the midwife's instruction- all she heard was the strains of Brahms' lullaby on a repetitive loop through her mind. At the end of each reprise she would let her head fall back into the pillows and gasp to catch her breath before pushing again. It was as if Heinrich was there with her, guiding her through her own physical war. She bore down in concert with her body's pulsating urges until she felt the fire of new life emerging between her thighs.

When at last she was delivered of the child, she opened her eyes, looked around the room, and then fainted from the effort. When she woke up, James was by her side cradling their daughter. She was relieved and reassured by his presence, though undeniably, a part of her was disappointed not to see Heinrich.


	12. Felicity, part 5

A prison camp in Germany, 1943

After the birth of their child, Felicity truly believed that she would never see Heinrich again. But there was one more meeting that fate had in store for them. It was 1943, and Felicity had been deported to a German prison some months prior.

She was thrown into an interrogation cell not knowing the reason why. She sat on the tiny cot and waited anxiously. As the door swung open, she did not recognize the silhouette that stood before her. A man entered and the door slammed shut behind him.

"What do you want with me?" She asked.

"It is me, Felicity." The Baron whispered.

"Heinrich? You came."

He sat down on the bench next to her and wrapped her in his arms. "Oh _liebe_ Felicity. I had to see you." Even in the dimly lit cell, he could make out a bruise on her face. He shuddered, knowing first-hand that horrible things happened in these prisons. Felicity winced as he caressed the bruise gently with his fingers.

"I've been told I am impertinent," she explained simply.

"Never." He smiled. "I'm sorry, Felicity, but the order to deport the English-born from the Channel Islands came directly from Hitler. There is nothing I can do to get you out of here. But I will make it clear to your jailers that this-" he indicated her bruise- "is not to happen again. You will be treated humanely."

"Thank you."

"Would that I could bring you to Vichy as my mistress. But Maréchal Pétain is very concerned with family values. _Travail, Famille, Patrie._ Though that does not stop the champagne orgies that happen in propaganda office of the Hôtel du Parc. Say what you will about my having invaded your home, but I never let that happen at Sous les Chênes."

"For which I am most grateful. Tell me, do you have any news of Phil?"

"I knew that you would ask that first thing. From the cursory records I was able to access, Mr. Brotherson is still alive. Beyond that, I know nothing."

"Thank you for that. It gives me hope. And your son?"

"Still in the Luftwaffe. Fortunately, I have regular letters." He paused before addressing the burning question that brought him here. "Felicity, speaking of our sons, I need to know. The prison records indicate that you arrived here alone. What became of the child you were carrying?"

She lifted her hand to his face and she burst into a smile, the first in ages. "We have a beautiful daughter, Heinrich. Her name is Eugénie Rose. She remained at Sous les Chênes."

"You named her for that spy, Eugène Lasalle? Of course."

"James' idea. You can cut down a tree, but Eugénie is a living memorial."

"Hmph. I always wanted a daughter. I kept my word, you know. I set up a bank account in Switzerland in Senator Dorr's name, but no funds have been drawn from the account."

"James is very proud. He will never take your money. He is absolutely devoted to the girl; he sees it as penance of a sort for giving Eugène Lasalle over to you."

"I am sorry that he has to bear that burden, but I am glad that the child is well-cared for. This war has gone on too long. I am truly sorry that it had to come to this. You don't deserve to be locked in here."

"Just hold me, Heinrich. Please."

"A few minutes more, Felicity. Then I will have to leave you. I am just passing through."

"Are you going… home?" Felicity asked hesitantly, and the Baron nodded.

"I have a two-week leave."

"Your wife must miss you terribly."

"Yes." He admitted. "But I had to see you. It is important to me to know that I have a daughter, even though I cannot claim her as my own. I am grateful to the senator for keeping her safe."

She snuggled deeply into his chest as if the uniform he wore didn't exist.

"Felicity, one day, we will end this war, and I hope that it happens sooner rather than later. When it does, perhaps you will be able to send me news of her through my banker in Switzerland. I trust the firm with my personal affairs."

"I shall try my best, though James and I are agreed that Eugénie should never know the truth."

"I understand. Thank you in advance, Felicity, for anything you can manage. Once you are freed, of course."

"If I am freed," she said, despairingly.

"Believe it, Felicity; you will be free one day." He rubbed her back for several more minutes.

Leaving her there was the hardest thing he'd ever done; yet he knew that he could not walk out with her. It would be tantamount to treason against the Reich; he would be sent to the eastern front and Felicity would be shot. He truly did not know what he would have done if he had found his love-child in the prison as well.

He managed to kiss her hair one more time and then steeled himself to leave. "I have to go. Forgive me." He raised her hand to his lips.

"Goodbye, Heinrich."

"Be strong, Felicity."

"Always." She responded.

* * *

1960

Felicity Dorr shuddered into her pillow as she remembered that day in the prison. It was the last time she'd seen Heinrich von Rheingarten. Now after all these years, he'd come back to find their daughter. She ached to see him again, but however could she reconcile that with the love she shared with her husband who had uprooted himself for her happiness?


	13. Felicity, part 6

1960

Felicity awoke with the sun despite not having slept much the night before. She was busy in the kitchen preparing a massive fry-up for the whole family when Philip arrived bright and early. _Overcompensation_ , he thought as he watched her. In his childhood, breakfasts were prepared by the staff- not his mother. But things had changed drastically since they all lived at Sous les Chênes. Philip greeted his mother with a tentative kiss on the cheek.

Philip sat down at the table as his mother tended the stove. He was grateful that she was not looking at him as he spoke; there were difficult things that he had to say before Eugénie came downstairs. "All these years, I have hated the Baron. And for him to waltz into our shop like that! Mum, I'm sorry. But I have to know. Did he force you?"

"No, Phil. It was a comfort to me. God help me, we comforted each other. If you hate him, you are entitled, but it must be for your own reasons." She broke down in tears as she slid eggs and sausage onto a plate in front of Phil.

Eugénie cautiously poked her head into the kitchen. "Mum?"

Felicity quickly dabbed her tears with her apron. "There you are, darling! I've made you breakfast."

"I'm not sure I'm very hungry."

"Sit down, sweet Genie. I should make an honest confession before your father smells the bacon." Eugénie obliged. "Right, no more secrets; I'll get straight to the point. During the occupation, I had a relationship with the Nazi commandant of St. Gregory. As a German officer he was my sworn enemy, but Heinrich was quite human. We were companions during some dark days; it was a long, cold, winter. We spoke of the letters that I received from your father, letters he received from his wife and son in the Luftwaffe. He had already lost one son to the war. Heinrich and I shared a very difficult period in our lives together, and- well, you are both old enough to know how these things happen. I fell pregnant, and Heinrich was transferred to Vichy before you arrived, Genie."

Eugénie blinked a few times before speaking. "Did you love him, mum?"

"Yes, I suppose that I did. Though we were never going to run off to Argentina together." (Phil smiled at the thought of Angélique Telleman, with whom he and Hannah still corresponded several times a year.) "I always intended to stay with your father- James, I mean, of course- if he would still have me. It was a blow to him when he returned from prison to find me pregnant, but he was merciful and agreed to raise you as his own. I have been faithful to him ever since."

James had been listening at the door. Philip stood up when he noticed his father. James entered the kitchen, placed a kiss on Eugénie's head, and sat down. Felicity rose and went back to the stove. She piled the eggs and bacon onto James' plate. "I'm so sorry, James, for all of this." She whispered.

Philip reminded his family of the problem at hand. "The Baron will return at 2PM. What are we going to do?"

James looked at Felicity for guidance. "He isn't the enemy anymore, James," she said meekly.

"In my eyes, he will always be the enemy, Felicity." James turned to Eugénie. "But you know the truth now, Genie. You are within your rights if you want to meet him."

Eugénie was crying, but she nodded in the affirmative.

"Shall I go with Genie to London?" Felicity asked delicately, not wanting to seem treasonous to her husband.

"No." James said definitively. Felicity bit her lip to prevent herself from screaming, _but I have to see him!_ "Phil and I will go to London. You and Genie should stay here and prepare a proper tea. Phil will drive the Baron here. I will remain in London at the shop."

"James, are you sure?" Felicity held her breath.

"I have no desire to be here, but I will not prevent your meeting- on the condition that Phil is there to keep a close eye on my two best girls."

Philip nodded in collusion with his father.

"Thank you," Felicity whispered, though she resented James making Philip her chaperone. Still, it was all too easy- getting her husband to accept her meeting her former lover. She should have suspected that James was using her to bait a trap for the Baron.


	14. Heinrich, part 1

Heinrich von Rheingarten approached Dorr's florist the next day at the appointed hour. The bell jangled as he opened the door; he found himself alone with the erstwhile senator. James Dorr was assembling a bouquet of red roses. He noticed that Philip was lurking in a corner silently.

"Greetings, senator Dorr. And to your son."

"Baron. I thought that perhaps you and I should have a chat before you see my wife. Yes, she is eager to see you as much as it pains me to admit it. And poor Eugénie's world has turned upside down over night. She had no idea. I must ask, what exactly are your intentions? Do you mean to spirit her away? Make my daughter a baroness?"

"No, senator. The German aristocracy was stripped of their titles when the war ended. There is no more Baron von Rheingarten, strictly speaking."

"All evidence to the contrary. I saw the business card you gave Genie."

"Ah yes. That is what we Germans call 'das Marketing.' I am in England to promote the wines from my vineyard, and the peerage is still alive and well in your corner of the world. But you raise a valid point. It is a matter of inheritance, even if I have no title to bestow. Speaking of which, you never touched the money I left for her in our Swiss bank account."

"No. I have no need for your money."

"So proud you are, senator. Moneyed or not, you are a luckier man than I. I lost my eldest son in the war. My second son was shot down over the channel, of all places, a few years after I had left. He survived, but sustained injuries that plague him to this day. He is in ill health; I will never have grandchildren. Still, I am grateful for every day that I have with him. The war did not take him from me, and that is enough."

"And where does Eugénie fit into this?"

"If she is to inherit my vineyard one day, I want to know her. I waited for many years, out of respect to you and your family. But she is an adult now. She must be well-informed in order to make her own decisions."

"Of course. And in the name of being well-informed, are you considered a war criminal? How, dare I ask, did you escape Nuremburg? Surely you must have been prosecuted."

"I made myself useful to the Americans and left the military behind me. I retired to my vineyard and have no more to do with war or government."

"It seems that we have quite a bit in common, then." said James, indicating his shop full of flora with his hands, though his double-entendre did not escape the former Baron. "Eugénie and Felicity," James continued. "They are at our country home. Philip will drive you there."

Heinrich pulled an awkward face. "I did not expect such generosity from you, senator." He paused. "I should call my wife to let her know that I am otherwise occupied and that she is not to worry."

"Please, use our phone in the office. Phil's wife Hannah can assist you."

After Heinrich asked the operator to place a call to the Royal Phoenix Hotel, Hannah listened intently to his conversation. It was clear to her that the woman did not know of her husband's infidelity. Hannah Dorr's English was so good by this point that Heinrich never suspected that German was her native tongue. She would soon be informing James of what she'd gleaned.

Heinrich returned to the front room.

"Herr von Rheingarten, may I ask a small favour? Place your finger here, on this ribbon so that I can tie a more perfect knot. This bouquet is for someone very special, you see," James said.

Heinrich obliged, placing his finger on the ribbon that tied the bouquet of roses.

"Thank you." He turned toward the back of the shop and called, "Phil? I believe that the Baron is ready to leave."

James and Philip exchanged a parting glance as the younger Dorr led the erstwhile Baron away. "Look out for your mum, Phil," James whispered after them. Once they were gone, James went into the back to see Hannah. He looked at her expectantly; she nodded. James was suddenly very nervous.


	15. Heinrich, part 2

The Dorr's home was rather rustic compared to the grandeur of Sous les Chênes, but it was comfortable and had extensive grounds. Heinrich smiled as he saw multiple greenhouses in the distance behind the main house. Philip escorted Heinrich into the house where Felicity and Eugénie were waiting. Felicity had a hard time concealing her joy at seeing him again. He noticed how her eyes creased as she smiled. "Greetings, Mrs. Dorr." He removed his hat and crossed the hall to kiss her chastely on the cheek.

"Please, Heinrich, I am still Felicity." Gesturing to the nervous young woman beside her, she said, "And I believe that you met Eugénie yesterday."

"Yes. I am glad that you and your parents agreed to meet with me. I brought you chocolate. I'm sorry. I don't know what it is that one does in these circumstances."

"Nor I, sir." Eugénie said as she accepted the box of chocolate. "Thank you."

"Eugénie." Heinrich said her name out loud as if he was trying it out. "It was for the best that you remain with your mother and senator Dorr, of course, but please know that I never stopped wondering about you."

"I see," she said uneasily. Seeking to break the tension, she added, "people call me Genie for short."

"Genie, then." Heinrich smiled as he recognized in her facial expressions a female version of his beloved Manfred.

They repaired to the dining room for tea and though the conversation consisted of pleasantries at first, Heinrich and the Dorrs found that they had much to speak of- many years of catching up. Though Philip was uncomfortable with the entire proceeding, even he had to admit that he had built the stone wall at the new orchard by hand using the skills that Mr. Brotherson had learned from von Rheingarten. Eugénie listened for some time, but when she decided to speak, she did so with the brazen curiosity of a teenager.

She asked Heinrich, "Have you ever killed anyone?" _Genie lets things simmer for a while then goes straight to the point- she's her mother's child all over,_ Heinrich thought.

Heinrich drew in a deep breath that betrayed the answer to her question. "I was a young soldier during the Great War. As I rose through the ranks it was inured in us that what we were doing was right. Germany suffered a bitter defeat, but I still believed in my country- my homeland. During the second world war, I became the commandant of St. Gregory still believing that our acts of war were justified. It took the grief of losing a son for me to challenge these ideas. Later, learning that my surviving son too had been shot down while I was basking in a thermal spa at Vichy was for me... what I believe you call a turning point. Many suffered at our hands- or worse." He glanced at Felicity, acknowledging her time in prison. "I have done many things that I regret very deeply."

"Am I one of those things?" Eugénie asked.

"No," he answered definitively, "though I do regret leaving your mother in a difficult situation." Felicity reached across the table to squeeze his hand in reassurance, but she dropped it as she caught Philip's glare.

Being honest with his daughter gave Heinrich the courage to ask Eugénie a question of his own: "I know that this is all very new to you, but have you given thought to the future?"

"Mum wants me studying horticulture and botany but I prefer business."

"My unsolicited advice is to do both." He cleared his throat. "I would like it if you would come to Germany one day to learn about the vineyard. It will be yours one day." Eugénie looked over at her mum, who nodded as Philip scowled. "You may choose to sell it, or you may find that you are interested in running it yourself."

"I will have to give that some thought," Eugénie said. She was not sure what her father- who raised her-would think, though the look on Philip's face was clear.

Felicity asked, "Phil, would you mind if the Baron and I took a walk?" Philip stared back at her as hard as stone. "Just a walk, Phil."

"I promise that nothing untoward will happen," Heinrich said. "I fear your father's right hook. Did he tell you that he knocked my front teeth loose many years ago?" Heinrich then tapped on his teeth. "Porcelain."

Phil and Genie exchanged glances. "Our dad wouldn't harm a flea!" Eugénie exclaimed.

"He would if it meant defending your mother."

"It's true." Felicity said, remembering a dark night. _To the victor go the spoils._ "You deserved that, too." She said to Heinrich and then looked again pleadingly at Philip.

"Go ahead." Philip finally conceded.

"Thank you."

The two headed into the orchard, and once under the cover of trees Heinrich took Felicity's hand. "The years have been good to you, Felicity. Thank you for today. It has been a beautiful glimpse of what might have been- the life that we could have had together."

"Yes, it has." She admitted. "As devastating as it has been to have all this come to light after so many years, it is good to see you. I never thought I would see you again after the prison, and I hate to think about that time. Thank you for coming to me one more time under happier circumstances, for coming to meet our daughter."

"Yes. You have done a wonderful job raising her, you and the senator. I owe him a great debt."

"James is a good man. Prison changed both of us, separately, yet we grew together. Our marriage is much stronger than it ever was before the war. And you? Do you have a good marriage?"

"I do. My wife spends most of her time caring for our son. But I have my vineyard to keep me busy. We love our son, and I am luckier than many who lost their sons in the war. I admire my wife very much, she is very strong to have dealt with so much pain and loss. Along with my business trip I promised her holidays in England after so many years sequestered at home. The height of hypocrisy, I know. Because here I am with you, and all I can think about is asking if I can kiss you one more time."

"You needn't ask, Heinrich." She leapt up to meet his lips, more spry than most sixty year olds would be. He responded passionately. Finally breaking apart to catch their breath, they gazed into one another's eyes. Heinrich wiped away the tears that formed in her eyes and looked up at the leafy canopy of the oak trees.

"These are impressive oaks- most appropriate as I have often dreamt of kissing you at Sous les Chênes. How's your French, Felicity?"

"Passable. Should I be getting on with something?"

"At least we are at peace, kissing under the oaks, _sous les chênes_. Unlike when I kissed you under the chains of war, _sous les chaînes_. A cruel double entendre."

"Ah, but our kisses here must still be secret, for we are bound by other chains- she indicated her wedding ring. Please, Heinrich, kiss me again before we ought to get back. It won't be long before Philip comes looking for us. I don't wish to cause him or James any more grief." Heinrich responded, running his hands from her hair all the way down her back. At last he brought his lips to rest on her forehead.

Holding hands, they started back together. As they reached the clearing at the edge of the orchard, she dropped his hand and together they walked into the sunlight towards the house.

"I must be getting back to London," he said to Eugénie and Philip. "I was wondering, Genie, if it would be all right if I write to you occasionally?"

"Yes, of course," she said. "Thank you for coming to find me. If you hadn't, I never would have known..." Her voice started to tremble.

"Until we meet again, then, _liebe_ Genie. Be good to your parents." He turned to Felicity and kissed her hand. "Goodbye, Felicity."

"Have a safe journey, Heinrich." She said with an air of formality, trying to hide her tears from her children.

It was their third goodbye, and though each time their parting seemed permanent, Felicity and Heinrich had come to know that they would be forever linked through their daughter. There were no more endings for them, only a new beginning. They may no longer be lovers, but one day, they would share grandchildren.


	16. Heinrich, part 3

Heinrich returned to the Royal Phoenix hotel late that evening. The first thing that he noticed when he opened the door to his suite was the bouquet of red roses on a small table in the antechamber. It was tied with the same ribbon that he himself had helped James Dorr affix earlier. He heard his wife's voice call out from the bedroom suite. _"Heinrich, bist du?"_

He drew in a deep breath before entering. On the chaise-lounge in their room, James Dorr was sitting next to his own wife who had clearly been crying, her hair straggled from its braid. "Good evening, mein herr." James said. "I have spent this lovely afternoon becoming better acquainted with your wife."

Heinrich was dumbstruck; the bed clothes were turned down. James Dorr mock-fumbled around for a moment before pulling his sweater vest back over his shirt.

* * *

A few hours earlier.

James Dorr arrived at the Royal Phoenix hotel clutching a bouquet of roses. He asked for the Baronness von Rheingarten at the front desk, and had a seat in the lobby. He knew her without a doubt when a striking woman in a blue dress with red embroidered trim descended the staircase.

"Baronness von Rheingarten?" He asked, and her head turned, her long, dark braid trailing behind her. "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is James Dorr. I used to be a senator on the island of St. Gregory where your husband was commandant. He is detained by business and has asked if I might show you around London. This way, you needn't fear facing any anti-German sentiment exploring on your own." He handed her the bouquet of roses.

"That is very kind of you. You were a friend of Heinrich's during the war?"

"Not exactly, but war makes for strange alliances. He requisitioned my home, so we lived together for a time at Sous les Chênes. Perhaps he mentioned something about his time there?"

"No, Heinrich is not one to tell war stories, not even to his wife. He did his job, and I think he wants to leave it at that. I can only imagine the horrors he faced."

"Quite," James responded sardonically. "Shall we take a walk?" he asked to change the subject.

After strolling by Westminster and the iconic palaces, the two stopped in an extravagant tea room for afternoon tea.

The baroness was impressed. "Champagne?" Then she seemed sceptical. "Why are you being so kind to me? You and Heinrich were on opposite sides of the war."

James gave her a nervous smile before reaching out to take her hand. "Perhaps I'm trying to seduce you. Or I would be if I were a little younger."

The baroness laughed tentatively, unsure if James was joking. "Oh, why-ever would you want to seduce me?"

James wished that he could be a smooth lothario, but something compelled him to be honest. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to hurt you. I just wanted to have something that is important to him. Your husband- he invaded my island, my home, and even appropriated my wife."

" _Was_?" the Baroness asked in her native German.

"I'm sorry if you didn't know about their affair," James said

"No, I cannot believe this to be true. Heinrich is a faithful man."

"This is the girl I have raised as my daughter." James took a photo out of his wallet and shared it with frau von Rheingarten. "This trip, you see, your husband came to meet her." She gasped.

"Yes, I see now that it must be true. She bears a strong resemblance to my sons." She began to tear up, and James moved his chair closer to comfort her.

"Let's go; I can see that this has come as a shock to you. We can take a walk in the park. Clear the air."

"No, take me back to the hotel. Herr Dorr- James, you said?" He nodded. "Now that we share secrets I think you should call me Lorelei."

* * *

James Dorr escorted Lorelei von Rheingarten back to her hotel. "I should leave you here, Lorelei." He said in the lobby.

"Come up to the room, James. I don't want to be alone this afternoon."

Once back in the hotel room, she asked him, "Do you have something sharp?" James pulled out a pocket knife and offered it to her. She angrily attacked the seal on a box of wine bottles.

Victorious, she proclaimed, "Here, we drink this now. Heinrich will be furious that it's gone."

"I'll get some glasses," James said with a smirk.

Several glasses of Spätburgunder later, Lorelei asked, "where do we go from here, James?"

"I don't know, Lorelei." He rubbed her back to comfort her. "I'm sorry, but I love my wife. I don't think that I can follow through with our plan."

" _Ja_." She said. "But we can make them suspect." Lorelei turned down the bedclothes and reached for her perfume. She dabbed it on her wrists and brought them to James' neck.

He caressed her arms, and she began to undo his collar. He drew in a sharp breath. Lorelei looked up at him expectantly and asked, "can I change your mind?"

James genuinely hesitated, though not without a secret satisfaction that his plan was coming to fruition. "Perhaps."

"Do you have any scars from the war, James?"

"Yes." Time had all but healed the brutal beating he'd received many years ago. Crops of pink scar tissue were all that remained of the wounds.

"Show me," she commanded, and James began to remove his shirt to comply. As she surveyed the unnatural pinkness on his flesh, she asked, "did Heinrich do this?"

"Indirectly. I could have been killed for helping my son. The Baron had me sent to a prison camp instead. I suppose it was a kindness."

"Let me repay his 'kindness.'" Lorelei replied, fingering his scarred torso.

"You are not indebted to me, Lorelei." He shuddered; only Felicity had touched him there.

"Indebted, no. But I am angry. And you share my anger. It is a powerful emotion that connects us, _ja?_ "

James nodded and they moved together towards the bed.

* * *

"Don't leave," Lorelei whispered as James was putting his clothes back on. "I cannot face Heinrich alone." Always one to do the honourable thing, even when committing adultery, James agreed to stay until Heinrich came back. Lorelei and James sat together on the chaise-lounge, awkwardly waiting.

At last Heinrich returned to the hotel and found his wife in the company of James Dorr. Lorelei began a tearful tirade to her husband in German; Heinrich stood immobile, absorbing her words and the hurt he'd caused.

James felt vindicated, though he was sad to cause any hurt to Felicity or Lorelei. At last he interrupted, "Ah Baron, I should be going. But before I do, you should know that there are consequences to your actions. You are not an invading army and I am not a doormat. If you seek to normalize relations with my daughter, you will do so with total transparency. You cannot have your cake and eat it too."

"I do not understand what you mean about cake. But I remember now that I underestimated you in the past and I have made the mistake of doing so again."

"Cheers, mate," he replied sarcastically. Raising the bottle of Spätburgunder, James continued. "Thanks for this. I think I'll have the front desk call me a cab; I do fear that I've had a bit too much to drink after all."

James was showing himself to the door when Lorelei called out, "wait, Herr Dorr." She ran over and kissed him passionately, in front of her husband.

James smiled. "Danke shön, Lorelei. Do take care."

Heinrich couldn't believe his eyes.

* * *

Once back at the flat above the flower shop, James peeked into the bedroom of his sleeping grandchildren. _I'm a lucky man,_ he thought, _though I will have to explain myself to Felicity._


	17. Eugenie, part 2

Felicity was waiting up for James to come back to her by the fire. It was past midnight and she was beginning to worry. When he finally arrived home, she greeted him with a kiss. Felicity immediately detected the scent of Lorelei's perfume on James' body.

"James?"

"Felicity." He took a deep breath and then came out with the truth without delay. "Today, I made it my mission that the Baronness von Rheingarten know the truth. Lorelei is her name. I am ashamed to admit that I had relations with her."

"And here I was going to tell you that the Baron had behaved like a perfect gentleman." She said bitterly.

"Felicity, I swear to you that it was the first and last time that I will betray you. I didn't want to hurt you; I need von Rheingarten to know my pain- to understand what he is asking of all of us. Everything is out in the open now and he and I are on equal ground; we can move forward however Genie wants to now. I love you and ask you to forgive me as I once forgave you."

He reached for her hand, but Felicity turned away to stare at the fire. "Well-played, James."

"You're angry with me, of course."

"Quite." Felicity was seething, yet she remained reasonable. The heated rows of their younger days had long since faded. James had married her when she was young and frightened, pregnant with his child. Later he'd uprooted himself to provide a better future for her child by another man. Of course she would forgive his one indiscretion despite her hurt. "But we've survived worse," she reminded him. "Affairs, at our age? I suppose we should feel lucky."

"I am lucky indeed," he said, remembering their grandchildren. "Luckier still if you find it in your heart to forgive me."

"Go have a shower. I'll put out the fire." Felicity began to jab aggressively at the logs with a poker.

"Let me help you," James reached for the fire tongs and separated the logs. They worked together to extinguish the fire that had been burning for some time, yet the stubborn embers still glowed brightly. Felicity poured a pitcher of water on the hearth and then James stirred it about with the poker. The mix of smoke and steam erased the baroness' perfume from his person.

James took Felicity's hand and together they went upstairs.

* * *

The next morning, Eugénie arose from her bed and looked at herself in the mirror, scrutinizing her own face. _Do I look like him?_ She wondered what Heinrich had looked like as a younger man. After a good ten minutes of self-reflection she decided to make her way downstairs for breakfast.

Eugénie found her father at the stove this time tending the eggs while her mother seemed to be staring sullenly into her coffee cup. "How's my little girl this morning?" James asked.

"I'm not a little girl anymore." She retorted, though she instantly regretted her tone as she saw her father's face fall. She realised how insecure he must be feeling.

"Oh, Dad. I only meant that… I'm grown up now."

"I know, darling." He offered her some eggs. "And I only wanted to know if you're all right. How was it yesterday?"

"Fine." She took a moment to push the eggs around her plate before elaborating. "Things make more sense now."

"Things?" Her father prompted.

"Like how you are always so over-protective of me. Or why we never had a Christmas tree."

"Oh, that. You know how it is, Genie. We're so busy with the plants in the shop all throughout December that I don't even want to look at another sprig of mistletoe or another bough of holly by the time the season's over. It's an exhausting time, and Hannah and the children keep the Jewish tradition anyway, so a tree at home hardly seems necessary."

Eugénie saw through his thin excuses. "Oh please, Dad. You always say that it's a German tradition."

James conceded with a nod. "Fair enough, Genie. This year, we shall have the grandest tree of them all. And I am not just saying that to indulge you. I have made my peace with it, our dealings with the Baron. You are, as you said yourself, a young woman now. You are free to make your own decisions. I will support you whatever path you choose."

Eugénie blinked back her tears as they embraced. She suddenly felt hungry for the first time since she'd learned the truth. She at last began to eat heartily.

Felicity, who had been watching in silence, reached over and took James' hand. He looked up and saw that she was crying. "I love you, James," she whispered.

"And I you, Felicity."

* * *

Two months had elapsed since the Baron's visit when Philip Dorr intercepted the first letter from the Baron to his sister. It would be the first of many.

"You can't keep it from her," Hannah protested when Phil showed her the offending envelope.

"I suppose not, but I don't like it. I wish he had never turned up here. Why couldn't the Baron have left well enough alone?"

"Phil, I don't like it either, but everyone seeks redemption, even a Nazi commandant- especially a Nazi commandant. He knows that he has a lot to answer for. Your parents too; they're still seeking to redeem themselves all these years later. It's why your mum fusses so much over everyone; she's still trying to atone for her sins that could have torn your family apart several times over. And why your dad's so devoted to Genie; he never forgave himself for Eugène Lasalle's death. They're all just trying to make the situation right."

"I still don't trust the Baron. I suppose there's no way for me to steam this letter open and then reseal it without Genie knowing?"

"Afraid not, my love. The die was cast long ago. It's time to let it play out." Hannah took the envelope from his hands and kissed him tenderly.

* * *

Eugénie herself had remained quiet on the whole affair after her meeting with the Baron. She was still treading carefully between love for her father and curiosity about the man who'd sired her. Even her boyfriend Trevor- who was left in the dark about what had been revealed- had noticed that the extroverted Eugénie had become withdrawn and mysterious. She had to find her own way through this.

When Eugénie came to the florist shop after her morning classes to work the afternoon behind the counter, Philip greeted her with a mournful look.

"What is it, Phil?" She asked.

He said nothing yet handed her an envelope. Once she read the return address, she scampered into the back room to read it.

Later that evening, Eugénie went up to Hannah and Philip's flat above the store for dinner. As she helped Hannah do the dishes, she finally shared what was on her mind.

"Hannah, I've been having a think these last few weeks," she started. "I wasn't sure I wanted to ask you this, but this letter I've received has tipped the scales. I need to know more about where I come from. Would you be able to teach me German? Just between you and me?"

Hannah paused for a moment. She hadn't even taught her own children German because she wanted them to be English; there was still a post-war stigma associated with all things German. The idea of having someone to share her childhood memories with appealed to her. She too would have the opportunity to redeem her heritage.

" _Gerne, Eugenia. Gerne._ "

FIN

* * *

Author Note: I realise that this may not be the ending that you were hoping for (what exactly is a good portmanteau name for Felicity and the Baron anyway?) but this is how the story unfolded itself to me. Ultimately, Felicity loved them both. She and Heinrich had a special place and time, but her life was with James. The door is open in the end for all three of them to be a part of their daughter's life. Redemption's readers were a precious few, so I want to thank you for sharing in this adventure that I had been writing bit by bit for well over a year before starting the attempt to sew it all together this summer. Over the next few days, I will be finally responding to your reviews and PMs that I've been neglecting. Merry Christmas, and I will see you back on the Lewis page soon!


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